


Wait for me to come home

by biaswift



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Real World, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-01
Updated: 2015-02-01
Packaged: 2018-03-10 01:16:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,378
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3271367
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/biaswift/pseuds/biaswift
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Annabeth moves a lot, and Percy likes to talk to her through his bedroom window. All human AU.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Wait for me to come home

**Author's Note:**

> This fanfiction was inspired in Ed Sheeran's Photograph. If you haven't heard it, give it a listen, it's a great song :)

Percy hated school. Well, everyone does right? At least, that's what he thought. How could anyone possibly  _enjoy_ waking up every morning to go there? There's nothing new. Nothing exciting. Every week, it's always the same routine. Nonetheless, Percy was at school on that Monday (and probably would be on every Monday for the rest of the school year). 

Percy was sat on his chair, talking to Jason about some basketball game. The teacher was late. Katie Law and her boyfriend were making out. Everything was normal. But nobody expected a new student in November. 

The girl quietly entered the class, obviously trying not to be noticed.

She failed.

The thing was, nobody ever moved to Mica. Who lived there, probably was born there. And so were their parents and grandparents. Nobody ever leaves Mica, either. 

The new girl sat in front of the class and put her books on the table. She looked around, like she was scanning the area for any threats; pulled out another book and began reading it.

Percy scanned her. She had blonde hair, gray eyes. Tall, muscular. Percy and his friend Grover had the habit of rating girls from 1 to 10. Grover had moved from Mica (yes!) when his dad lost his job, two years ago, but Percy still considered him his best friend.

Percy gave the girl an 8.5. 

The teacher, Mrs. Lawrence, entered the class. If anyone asked Percy to describe her, he would simply say "traditional old lady". That's her. 

Mrs. Lawrence asked for silence and scanned the back of the class, like she was looking for someone. She found them right in front of her. 

"Oh, here you are" she said. "Annabeth, right?"

 _So that's her name_ , Percy thought. 

Annabeth nodded. The teacher continued:

"I'm Mrs. Lawrence. Welcome to Mica High School."

Annabeth just smiled. 

 

New students, as mentioned, were rare in Mica High School. When they came, the newcomers were treated like aliens by most of the people. Especially if they had different accents.

"Did you see the new girl?" Thalia questioned during lunch. 

"She's in my class, at least in first period." Jason replied. 

"Her name is... what was it? Beth? Anne?" Piper added.

"Annabeth" Percy immediately corrected. 

All heads turned to him, including Frank and Hazel, who never really payed attention to anything. 

Percy didn't know why he had said that. Why he had memorized her name that fast. He wanted to believe it was because she was new. 

"Okay...? Weird. Anyway, have you seen Mr. Jones? I think he doesn't work here anymore." Leo began. 

Percy lost interest in the conversation and looked around at the cafeteria. Everything was the same... except for Annabeth. She ate alone in a table in the corner of the place. Well, not alone. She sat with Maya Lio, but it was probably because Maya was always alone as well. What could Percy do if she always wore those weird socks with pink stripes? Does she even change them? Does she  _wash_  them?

Annabeth wasn't talking to Maya, though. She looked around the cafeteria, just like Percy was doing. Her gray eyes were like the clouds during a storm. Annabeth didn't look fragile or vulnerable at all. She looked intimidating. 

Percy noticed she wasn't an 8.5. She was more. A 9.5, maybe. 

Annabeth's eyes stopped on Percy and she realized he was staring at her. And, instead of just quickly looking away, she smiled to him and went back to her food. Percy didn't know why he was so impressed by that. The boy turned to his friends and said:

"Annabeth is sitting with Maya Striped Socks."

"That's nice, man!" Jason replied sarcastically. 

"Looks like someone has a cru-ush" Piper sang. 

"Please," Percy mumbed in response "I'm 16. I don't 'have crushes'."

But Percy didn't know he would, yes, "have a crush" in Annabeth sooner than he thought. 

 

The first thing Percy's mom said to him when he got home from school was:

"We have new neighbours!" 

Percy thought about it for a second. New neighbour. New student. Annabeth was probably his neighbour. Which was good. For Percy at least. Nobody from his school lived close to him. They could become friends. Which was good for her too, because, if Annabeth stayed on Maya's table, she would have to talk to her sooner or later. 

Percy dropped his backpack on his bed and followed his mom out the door to take a look at the people carrying boxes, entering and leaving the house next to them.

The first person Percy saw was a man in his late fourties with glasses and brown hair. After him, he saw a woman, probably his wife, long brown hair, followed by two boys. And, finally, Percy saw Annabeth. Her curly hair was now tied in a ponytail and she carried a box like she'd done that a million times, if it was possible to look like that. 

"Come on, Percy. Let's see if they want help" Percy's mom called. 

Percy's mom, Sally Jackson was the most amazing person in the world. She raised him alone, worked in a candy shop and helped anyone who asked for it. 

When Percy and his mom stopped in front of the other house, Annabeth walked to them.

"Hi! Can I help you?" she said

"Hello, dear. I'm Sally." she paused and looked at her son "Percy."

"Oh. I'm Percy."

Annabeth looked at him.

"Didn't I see you today at school?" she asked.

"Yeah, you did. And you're in my English class."

"Yes. I think I saw you there, too."

"So you know each other, that's great!" Sally interrupted "We would like to know if you want some help with the boxes?"

"That would be great, Mrs. Jackson. Thank you!" she smiled. 

Soon, Percy and Annabeth were carrying boxes around the house. They didn't say much more than  _Where do I put this?_  at first, but Percy decided to ask:

"So, that girl you sat with at lunch."

"What about her?" Annabeth replied. 

"Did you talk to her?"

"Not a word. When I sat with her, she looked at me like I was invading her personal space. But there was nowhere else to sit. Too bad for her."

Percy laughed.

"Did you notice her socks?"

"Why? Does she wear them everyday?"

"Yes. And it's been like, two years since she started wearing them. She never. Takes. It. Off. I don't even know if she washes them."

"Maybe she does that on the weekend."

Percy stopped walking. 

"How did I never think of that?"

"You never thought about it enough."

Percy raised one eyebrow, but didn't say anything.  _Very smart, aren't you?,_  he thought, annoyed.

Or, at least, he was supposed to be. Percy hated when people liked to show everyone they were smart. Smarter than him. The boy had dealed with dislexya his entire life, and, sadly, was used to people calling him stupid and dumb. But that doesn't mean he liked it.

Upstairs, Annabeth placed the last box on its place. She looked at Percy and smiled. She did that a lot. 

"Thanks for the help. Your mother is really nice."

"I know!" Percy replied, happily, making Annabeth laugh. "She's the best!"

"See you tomorrow at school?"

"Definitely. Why don't you sit with us at lunch tomorrow?"

"Okay." she smiled again.

From that time on, Percy always smiled back.

 

Annabeth was moving again. She lost count of how many times she'd done that. If someone asked her to name all cities she's lived on, she'd probably forget some.

This time, she moved to Mica, a small town in the middle of nowhere. She didn't even know how her dad got a job there. 

Her dad and his jobs. That's always why they move. Her dad loses his job, her step mother never gets a job and they have to go somewhere else. 

Annabeth goes from town to town, state to state, school to school. In the beggining, she had tried to stay in touch with her old friends, but gave up after a few years. It was too much to keep up with. 

Her luck was she was a smart girl. It didn't matter what school she went to, she could quickly catch up with everyone else. If she stayed there for long enough, she would even start tutoring some people. 

But, the worst thing about leaving anywhere was having to leave her friends. And Annabeth always had to do that, it never changed. She once tried not to make friends, but it made her even sadder than having to leave them someday.

But, wherever she was, she always tried not to attached to anything but friends. Places, pets, belongings: she would go away from them at some point. 

But, the most important of all: Annabeth promised she would not let herself fall in love. It was the worst thing of all. At least not until she lived by herself, when she would stay in only one place for as long as possible. 

It had only happened once, but it hurt her enough to realise she didn't want to feel that pain again. Annabeth was 15. She started dating a guy named Austin Taylor. Three months later, she moved. It was horrible. She didn't know what to do: enjoy his company for as long as she could or slowly shut him off? She chose the first option, making things even worse. The girl cried for days. 

Looking back at it now, Annabeth saw he wasn't that special. It was a normal high school relationship, one of those that end sooner or later. But, he did make her happy and they were in love. Good while it lasted, is how Annabeth would describe their relationship. 

Later, Annabeth would wish that she could actually control her heart. 

 

On Annabeth's first day in Mica High School, nobody talked to her, except for that teacher, Mrs. Lawrence. She didn't try to talk to anyone either. At lunch, she sat with a girl who was alone in a table. She looked lonely, so Annabeth kindly decided to brighten her day, even though she was wearing knee-high striped pink socks Annabeth used to wear when she was 7. But, when Annabeth got to the table, the girl looked at her like she had 3 heads and was wearing a different hat in each one of them. She just ignored the look. Annabeth and pink socks girl didn't say a word to each other. 

Annabeth later learned that the girl's name was Maya Lio and she always wore those socks. She learned it from the boy that was looking at her at lunch.

Annabeth's pet peeve was mean people. People who always looked grumpy and never bothered to say one kind word to anyone. So, whenever she had any kind of human interaction with anyone, she smiled. Annabeth knew that it could make someone happier. 

So, when she saw the boy looking at her, she smiled. 

Annabeth also learned that the boy's name was Percy Jackson, had a really kind mother and he was her neighbour.

Percy was tall and muscular, because, he told her, he was the captain of the swim team. He had sea-green eyes and raven black hair, and a crooked smile that probably melted hearts, but not Annabeth's. She couldn't fall in love. 

Percy and his mom, Sally, helped Annabeth's family carry their boxes inside the new house. Annabeth wondered how long they would stay there.

 

On the next day, at lunch, Annabeth went directly to Percy's table. She felt all the eyes on her. She could hear the  _Why isn't she sitting with Maya?_  on everyone's minds. But Annabeth just smiled. 

Percy introduced her to his friends. He didn't mention that Piper and Jason were dating, but she could see it. The way they talked and looked at each other was different than how they acted around their other friends.  _If I could only..._  Annabeth though.

On that lunch, Annabeth quickly became friends with everyone else, but she got along especially with Piper and Percy. She could see that they would be amazing friends if she got close enough to them. And, since Percy was her neighbour, she had the feeling that it would be easy to be friends with him. 

"So, Annabeth, are you enjoying Mica? I'm sorry you had to move from wherever you were, that probably sucks" Piper said. 

"Yeah, it really does. But I am used to it. I move a lot" Annabeth replied. She prepared herself to have this conversation one more time.

"A lot? What do you mean with 'a lot'?" Leo asked, a confused expression on his face. 

"Like a lot  _a lot_. My dad... he... is always being transfered from place to place and we have to follow him because he pays our bills." Annabeth chose her words carefully. She didn't want her new friends to think her dad was useless if she said  _My dad keeps losing his job because he has some stupid problem with keeping one_. 

"Oh. Wait. Does that mean you will move from Mica?" Percy was the first one to ask. 

Annabeth sighed. 

"Yes. Probably."

"When?"

"I never know. Could be two months, could be a year."

That annoyed Annabeth. This one time, her dad could only keep his job for two months before they moved out from where they were living.  _Two months_. The longest they had stayed somewhere was a year and three months, in Chicago. That's where Annabeth dated Austin Taylor. 

Piper interrupted her thoughts:

"Hazel. You told me you bought the Lion King and we have to watch it."

"Okay, let me see. My place, Saturday?"

And Annabeth would go to her first social event in Mica. Would it be the last one?

 

Annabeth was leaving the class when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around to see Percy with a huge smile on his face. 

"Annabeth!"

"Percy!" she joked. 

"Annabeth. You. You're a gift from the gods." Percy said, throwing his hands up and pointing to the sky. 

"Yeah, I get that a lot" she replied sarcastically. "Why do you say that?"

"You're smart. You're my neighbour. You could tutor me!" the boy said like he had just discovered America.

"You're right. I could."

Percy's smile faded. 

"But you won't?"

"I'm joking, dork. Of course I will." she smiled, and so did her friend. 

"Great! I'll call you!" he said as he ran to his next class, leaving Annabeth there, still with a small smile on her face.

 

Percy was in his room, fighting with his Algebra texbook, when he remembered: Annabeth. But his excitement quickly faded when he realised he hadn't asked for her number. He texted Jason. 

 

Percy:  _dude do u have annabeths number_

Jason:  _no_

Percy:  _thx a lot_

Jason:  _ur welcome_

Percy:  _DO SOMETHING IDIOT ASK PIPER ARENT U W HER_

Jason:  _k hold on_

Jason:  _she doesnt have it_

Percy:  _gr8 thx again_

 

The boy sighed, defeated. He was about to go back to his textbook when he heard something on his window, but decided to ignore it. Then, he heard it again. This time he walked to window and opened it. Percy looked down and to the sides, but saw nothing. When he looked in front of him, towards Annabeth's house, he saw her standing in front of a window with a rock on her hand and a smile on her face. 

"Well, hello there!" Annabeth called. 

"Annabeth! I couldn't call yo- wait. Is that your room?"

"Yes. Why?" she raised an eyebrow. 

"Because our rooms are facing each other and we could have this super awesome communication system and talk to each other in the commodity of our bedrooms!" Percy said without stopping to breathe. 

"Okay? Anyway, if you're not busy..."

"I'm not. Come over and fill me with your knowledge."

Annabeth nodded, laughed, rolled her eyes and closed her window. 

 

"Percy, you have to find the constant first. Where's the constant?"

Percy stared at the constant. 

"Fuck the constant, actually. Why can't the constant find itself?"

Annabeth rolled her eyes. The two of them were sitting on the couch at Percy's living room. 

"Percy, don't be so angry at the constant. Just find it."

The boy stared at Annabeth with his best baby seal face. The girl sighed. 

"Stop looking at me like that! Okay, listen: get five in a row correct and we'll take a break and eat something." she suggested. 

"Great idea. I'm hungry."

"I hope you're not too hungry, I'm calculating it will take you at least 20 minutes to eat."

"Not if I...  _break the rules_." Percy teased.

"Go ahead. Break the rules. When the Algebra test comes, you will regret it." Annabeth said, casually, looking at him. 

"You're an evil master. And I found the stupid constant."

Annabeth smiled. 

Fifteen minutes later Percy had gotten four questions right. 

"Okay, Percy. This is a very important moment. Your honor depends on this moment. You used your strenght and wisdom in these last fifteen minutes to an important cause that might define your future. The answer is..." Annabeth joked and looked down at Percy's notebook "...correct!

Percy jumped from his chair and bowed down to an unexistent crowd and Annabeth rolled her eyes. 

"So, madam, do you prefer Oreos or M&M's?" Percy asked. 

"M&M's, please. And a glass of wine."

"Thank you for choosing the Jackson's residence."

When Percy got back with the candy and a bag of chips, the teenagers sat next to eachother on the couch started eating. 

"So, Annabeth. Going to be a mathematician when you grow up or something?" Percy asked, like a kid would ask their friend. 

Annabeth laughed. 

"Architect. What about you?"

Percy thought about it for a minute. He never took time to consider that, the moment of choosing is still far away for him. 

"'M not sure. Can you major in swimming?"

"I don't think so, sorry" the girl rolled her eyes. 

"I think marine biology. I like fish."

"'I like fish'. Great explanation. Wait. Do you  _eat_  fish?"

"Of course I eat fish. I'm going to help fish live and have babies so we have more fish to eat!"

"Now, that's something I've never heard."

"You have, now."

Annabeth stuck her tongue out at him. 

"Where was the last place you lived in? I mean, before Mica."

"I lived in Brookline. It's, like, next to Boston."

"Wow. You came all the way from there. That sucks. But where does your dad work? What compaby would transfer someone that much?"

Annabeth looked at her hands, a sad expression on her face.

"He isn't."

"Isn't...?"

"Transfered."

Percy was confused. 

"Then what-"

"My dad is unable to keep a job. He's always being fired for many reasons. Sometimes I think he's just useless." Annabeth blurted out. 

"Oh."

"Yeah, oh. It sucks and I always have to leave my friends behind and I can't get to anything or anyone. I never had a normal life, you know?"

Percy just nodded. Annabeth blinked and looked at Percy. 

"Eh, sorry for annoying you with my personal problems" Percy was about to say it was okay, but she continued. "I have an idea! Wait here." 

Annabeth ran out of Percy's house, leaving the boy there, confused. 

Percy ended up liking Annabeth more than he thought he would. Sure, she was smart and always corrected Percy and rolled her eyes at him, but it seemed natural; it was a part of her. And it didn't annoy Percy at all. She was different from Jenny Smith, that laughed at everyone who said something wrong during class, including the teacher. She was mean, Annabeth wasn't. 

Interrupting his thoughts, Annabeth entered the room holding two bells and some string. 

"Ta-da!" she exclaimed.

"And that is?" Percy questioned. 

"How did you put it?" she though about it for a second and smiled "Our super awesome communication system."

Percy smiled even harder.

"Follow me!"

He led Annabeth to his room and she immediately headed to the window. 

"Okay, Percy. I need you to stay here and hold one bell. Tie a piece of string there, but don't make a knot. It has to move when I pull it. When I show up in my window, you will throw the rest of the string for me. Got it?" Annabeth instructed. 

"Yes, ma'am."

"Good. See you in 30 seconds."

Annabeth soon appeared behind her window.

"Okay, Percy! Throw the string! If it falls, you're going downstairs to get it."

Percy threw it and Annabeth caught it, tying it to her window. Then, she tied the bell to the edge of the string. 

"Okay. Percy, pull the string."

He did, and as he pulled it, the bell rang on Annabeth's room. The girl smiled.

"Great! Now, I'm going to tie another piece of string to my window and throw the rest to you. There, catch it! Good, now tie it to your window like you did with the first string. Do you have your bell?"

Percy nodded. 

"Okay. Tie it to the edge of that string. Did you tie it?"

He nodded again. Annabeth pulled the string on her side and the bell rang on Percy's room. 

"It's done. So whenever one of us wants to talk to the other, ring the bell. If we're on the room, we'll hear it" Annabeth finished. 

"We're lucky out windows are only, like, four feet away."

Annabeth smiled and nodded. 

Percy looked back at his clock and jumped.

"Shit. I'm late for swim practice! Bye, Annabeth!"

He was too busy running downstairs to hear Annabeth's goodbye. 

 

It was Saturday and Percy was going to give Annabeth a ride (on his mom's car) to Hazel's house to watch Lion King. 

Annabeth had been tutoring Percy that entire week and was having more fun with it than she'd like to admit. When her dad asked her if she was dating him, she said  _Just friends,_ more to herself that to her father. 

Percy was a great person, funny, nice and cute. But Annabeth couldn't let that get to her heart. She was sure that if she could actually normally date a person, she would be romantically interested in Percy. But she couldn't. 

Annabeth was lying on her bed, reading a book, when she heard the bell ring on her window. She walked there and saw Percy, keys in his hand. 

"You ready?" he asked. 

"Going downstairs."

Annabeth got her phone and a coat. When she walked out of her house, Percy was already there, waiting for her. 

"Hi."

"Hey."

Percy turned on the radio and put on a CD. 

"Who's that?" Annabeth asked. 

"Who  _who_?"

"Whose is the CD, idiot." the girl rolled her eyes. 

"Oh. Right. Ed Sheeran."

Annabeth smiled.

"I like Ed Sheeran."

Percy looked at her. 

"Oh, you do? Are you totally in love with Ed Sheeran? Are you crazy for Ed Sheeran? Would you scream like a newborn baby if you saw him?" he opened the car window. "Attention, world! I have an Ed Sheeran lover in my car!"

Annabeth slapped Percy's shoulder.

"Shut up, you idiot! Are you crazy? Why don't you scream some more? I'm sure they haven't heard you in China."

But Annabeth wasn't sure if he heard her because he was laughing too hard. 

"Just shut up and let's enjoy the music."

When Percy did shut up,  _Photograph_  was playing. Annabeth smiled. That was her favorite song.

When it ended, Percy's phone rang. 

"Can you get that for me? You know, can't drive and talk on the phone at the same time." the boy requested. 

"Ooh, so responsible" Annabeth replied and looked at the phone. The screen read  _Hazel_. 

"Hi, Hazel. This is Annabeth, Percy's driving."

" _Oh, hi, Annabeth!_ " but Hazel's voice sounded weird " _I'm calling to say that you can't come over. I'm sick. Sorry._ "

"Oh. Okay, then. Thanks for telling us, get better soon."

Annabeth heard Hazel sneeze. 

" _Thanks and sorry again. I gotta go, bye, Annabeth!_ "

"Don't worry about it. Bye" Hazel hung up.

Percy looked at Annabeth, worried. 

"What happened?" he asked. 

"Bad news. Hazel's sick and the movie was cancelled." Annabeth informed.

"Wow, that sucks. We're almost at her house, but I don't think she wants visitors, right?" 

Annabeth nodded. 

"Then I know where we're going!" Percy said, excited. 

Annabeth raised her eyebrows. 

"And where would that be?"

"The Mica Lake. It's a lake."

"Really? I wouldn't have guessed it."

"Eh. Anyway, it's very small, it's almost a puddle, but whatever. There are fish in the lake and I like seeing them swim. And it's a quiet place, so we can blast Ed Sheeran and nobody will hear it."

"Seems good to me" Annabeth smiled. 

"Great! Let's go!"

 

The Mica Lake was almost a puddle. A big puddle, but still.

"Welcome to The Mica Lake!" Percy announced as he stopped the car. 

The two of them sat at the side of the lake. Annabeth looked at Percy's car. Unfortunately, he noticed. 

"Can you drive, Annabeth?" the boy asked.

"Um." she looked at her hands. 

" _Um_  what?"

" _Um_  no. I can't drive."

"Why? I mean, you're almost 17, right?"

" _Because_ , since I'm always going from place to place, I don't have enough time to complete the class. Believe me, I've tried."

"Okay. That sucks." Percy shrugged his shoulders. 

"I get that a lot."

Annabeth watched the fish swim in front of her. The sunlight was starting to fade. 

They stayed in silence for a few minutes. Percy broke it. 

"Annabeth, what if you fall in love? Like, if you want to date someone, but then you have to leave them?"

Annabeth was surprised. She had been asked a lot of different questions about her crazy life, but never that one. She closed her eyes. 

"I can't fall in love. I promised myself I won't until I live by myself. But I can't, right now. It hurts too much."

"But what if you do?" Percy insisted. 

"I won't, okay?" Annabeth replied, annoyed. 

But his question wasn't stupid, and Annabeth knew it. If she did fall in love, what would she do? Would she give in to her feelings and date the person or would she just pretend the feelings don't exist? Annabeth would rather not think about that.

She would rather not fall in love. 

 

Two months had passed since Annabeth had entered Mica High School and Percy's life. 

And, he was sure, he was in love with her. 

He loved the way she talked, her little habits, her smile, the way her hair fell on the side of her neck, down her shoulders and her back. He loved the intimidating look in her gray eyes, like she was saying  _Fight me_. 

He loved how, everyday, when he got back from swim practice, he looked out his window (that he used to hate. Why have a window if the only view is another window and a brick wall?) and saw Annabeth sitting in her bed, reading some book that changed every two days - "What are you reading, Annabeth?" "Why do you ask? You're not going to read it anyway". Then, he pulled the string on his window and Annabeth walked to hers and they talked about everything and nothing until one of them had to leave. 

But whenever Percy though about the fact that he loved her, he wanted to punch someone. 

Percy though about what Annabeth had told him. I _can't fall in love. It hurts too much_.

But it wasn't her fault. It was her father's fault. Percy didn't want to have anything against a man he barely talked to. But if it wasn't for him, Annabeth wouldn't have to leave a life she built somewhere to go to a completely new place and meet completely new people and build an entirely new life. So, yeah, Percy didn't like Frederick Chase. 

Percy was happy that Annabeth's brothers were still young. They didn't suffer as much as Annabeth did. And they certainly wouldn't get a broken heart so early. 

For a while, the title of "Annabeth's best friend" would have to do. 

 

One day, when Percy got back from swim practice and looked out his window, Annabeth wasn't reading a book. Sure, she had one in her hands, but she was sitting in her bed staring blankly at the wall in front of her. 

Percy decided she looked funny (and cute) like that, so, instead of ringing the bell, he texted her. 

 

Percy:  _watcha doin_

 

Annabeth looked away from the wall and at her bed, where her phone was lying, and picked it up. Five seconds later, she looked up to the window and saw Percy there, with a grin on his face. Another second later, Percy's phone buzzed. 

 

Annabeth:  _Why aren't you using our super awesome communication system?_

 

Percy laughed at her correct grammar. 

 

Percy:  _idk. U just looked funny staring at the wall like that_

 

Percy heard his bell ring, even though he was already at the window. 

"Hey" he said. 

"Hello. In case you were wondering, I wasn't just mindlessly staring at the wall. I was listening to the adorable sound of my parents fighting" Annabeth sighed and continued. "You know, that woman isn't actually my mom, just my step-mom. My real mom gave birth to me, tossed me to my dad and vanished."

Percy opened his mouth, like he was going to say something, but closed it. Then he opened it again:

"Have you ever seen your mom? I mean, after she... you know." Percy asked carefully.

Annabeth stared at nothing, like she was reliving the moment in her head. 

"I was 12" she recalled. "Matthew and Bobby were babies. They were crying in the middle of the supermarket. That was what caught her attention, but when she saw who was the father, she sprinted away. My dad called her name, tried to make her stay so maybe I could talk to her, but she never wanted anything with me."

Silence. The teenagers could hear the birds singing in their quiet neighbourhood. 

"Do you ever want to talk to her? To have an explanation?" Percy asked. 

"Just every single day of my life" Annabeth paused. "What about your dad?"

"He died when I was a baby."

"I'm sorry."

"It's okay. I mean, I never knew enough of him to miss him and my mom has always been enough."

Annabeth nodded and smiled. The two stayed in silence for a few minutes. 

"Percy, you're going to help me do something" it wasn't a question. 

The boy raised his eyebrows. 

"Alright. What thing?"

"I want to find my mom."

Percy widened his eyes. 

"Woah. Wait. Find  _find_?"

"Find as in stalk and meet."

"Sounds like a creepy version of Meet & Greet."

"Whatever. That's what we're going to do. But fir-"

Annabeth suddenly stopped talking and looked at her bedroom door. 

"I'm coming, dad!" she screamed and turned to Percy. "This conversation isn't over. See you tomorrow!"

 

It was when Percy started talking about seaweed that Annabeth realised it was too late. She was in love with him. It didn't matter how she pushed back the way her heart started rushing whenever he talked to her and the comments her brain made and she couldn't control, like  _Percy looks super cute wearing that shirt_  or  _I really want to kiss Percy right now_.

The two had quickly became best friends, but Annabeth wanted more than friends. She hated herself for that. Annabeth was constantly debating with herself: date him or pretend you hate him? That "just friends" routine was killing her. But she decided that not being his friend anymore would be worse than being his friend. In the end, she would end up leaving, so why not leave it as it was? She would just keep dealing with  _I want to date Percy_  instead of  _I started dating Percy and now I have to leave him_. It wouldn't be great, but at least it wouldn't hurt that much. At least, Annabeth thought it wouldn't.

 

When Percy got back from swim practice, Annabeth was already at her window, ringing the bell when she saw the door starting to move. 

"Woah, calm down, lady. Percy's here" the boy laughed.

Percy looked really hot whenever he came back from swim practice. His hair was wet and sticked to his forehead. His green eyes shined more than ever. Annabeth wanted to kiss him more than ever. 

"Come over" Annabeth replied, smiling. 

"So bossy. But I've been there today, I don't want to take advantage of your hospitality."

"Then I'm coming over."

Percy rolled his eyes.

"Fine, but bring food."

Annabeth brought food. And a laptop. 

"What's that for?" Percy asked, pointing to the device. 

"It's for my Stalk & Meet. I need to know where she is first. I only know she lives here in Mica. What a coincidence, right?"

"Great, but how are you going to find her?"

Annabeth rolled her eyes. 

"You're so stupid. I'm Googling her name, duh."

"Oh, true."

The two of them sat next to eachother on Percy's couch as Annabeth typed "Aria Chase" on Google. She scrolled through the results, but found nothing interesting. 

"What was her single name?" Annabeth asked herself and quickly typed "Aria Houston".

The girl once again examinated the results and clicked a Facebook profile she found. 

"Bingo. That's her!" Annabeth exclaimed. 

Annabeth changed to mode full-on stalker and wrote down everything she could collect about her absent mother. Percy interrupted her stalking:

"Annabeth, I'm feeling completely useless here. What am I supposed to do?"

"Be patient, Percy, you enter the Stalk & Meet when I find the information I ne- here! Her phone number!"

"Her numb- Annabeth, how did you find that?" Percy asked, amazed. 

"One of her friends asked for it on the comments of a photo she posted. Anyway, you're going to call her and pretend that you're from the social service. You tell her that I have suffered an accident and that they couldn't reach my dad. Tell her to go to some hospital and I'll be waiting there."

Percy stared at Annabeth like she was crazy.

"You're crazy. That's not going to work."

"Yes, it is. It's a good plan. Besides, you won't be the one who's meeting her. All you have to do is make a 50 seconds call."

Percy ran his hands through his hair and mumbled something that sounded like "if I didn't locksj you" and said:

"Okay. When do you want to do this?"

"Not yet. I need to know more about her routine."

"You terrify me, Annabeth Chase."

"Love you too. I have to go, dinner's probably ready. Bye."

"Do you need a drive home?"

"Dork."

God, she loved him.

 

Annabeth had gotten very close to Piper in the first months she lived in Mica. They loved going to The Mica Lake and throwing rocks at the fish (god forbit Percy heard about that). 

One day, Piper just randomly started laughing when she had just thrown a rock into the lake. 

"What's so funny?" Annabeth asked. 

"There's this Taylor Swift song..." Piper began. 

"And there she goes" Annabeth interrupted, rolling her eyes. Piper was an inconditional fan of Taylor Swift. 

"Look at the fish. The sunlight reflexes on them. They shine."

"People throw rocks at shiny things. You've quoted that a zillion times." Annabeth complained. 

"At things that shine" the other girl corrected. 

"Whatever."

They stayed in silence for a few minutes.

"So. Annabeth." Piper began once more. 

"Yes?"

"You and Percy."

"What about us?"

"Are you, like, dating? You obviously like him and he obviously likes you. Why not move forward?"

Annabeth broke down. She told Piper everything. Told her about Austin Taylor. About the pain she felt when she left him and how it would hurt ten times more if she left Percy. 

Piper just hugged her friend. 

"Annabeth. Understand: if you're dating Percy or not, he'll be the same person whe- if you leave Mica. Do whatever you want, just don't go nuts thinking about it, okay?"

Annabeth nodded, but though:  _I've already gone nuts_.

 

When Percy got back from swim practice on Tuesday, Annabeth rang his bell before he could ring hers. 

"It's time" she said simply.

Fifteen minutes later, the two of them were in front of the Public Emergency Center, a phone in Annabeth's hand. 

"Okay, Percy. This is the time. The number is there, just act like someone who works for the social service."

Percy stared at the phone Annabeth gave him.

"Just call her, boy! Jesus!"

Annabeth watched anxiously as Percy put the phone in his ear and gulped. 

He widened his eyes. Annabeth though it meant her mom had picked up the phone. 

"Aria Chase?" pause "Yes, ma'am. Houston. My name is Kevin. I'm from the social service and I am calling to inform that your daughter has suffered an accident and is currently at the Public Emergency Center." Pause. "Her father could not be reached ma'am, and since she is a minor, we need a familiar. Can you come to the hospital as fast as you can?" Pause. "Thank you, ma'am. Have a good day." Percy hung up the phone and turned to Annabeth. "She's coming."

A sparkle of hope lit up on Annabeth's chest. She would finally know why her mother abandoned her without explanation!

"Okay, now go to the car. I'm going to wait for her here. Thanks, Kevin!" 

Percy wished her good luck and walked to the car, leaving her alone. 

After fifteen minutes of waiting, a black car parked in the corner and Annabeth's mom came out of it. The woman's blonde hair was tied in a ponytail, her blue eyes were nervous. She walked quickly to the hospital, towards the door; Annabeth was sitting in a bench next to it. Seeing that Aria hadn't noticed her, Annabeth ran to her and grabbed her arm. 

Annabeth's mother looked down at her. A million emotions passed through her eyes. 

But she ended up angry. 

"Weren't you in a fatal accident?" Aria asked, annoyed. 

"Hum, no, but-" Annabeth started. 

"You made me get out of where I was to take care of an accident that  _doesn't exist_?"

"Yes, but-"

"What makes you think you have the right-"

" _Listen to me!_ " Annabeth screamed. 

Her mother stayed quiet and crossed her arms, waiting. 

"First of all" Annabeth began again, also angry because of her treatment " _you_ don't have the right to be mad at me because of one little thing when you left me motherless for 17 years."

The rage on Aria's eyes faded. 

"But I'm not here for this talk," the daughter continued "I want you to explain me why you left my dad and I after I was born."

Annabeth looked right into her mother'sneyes - could she call her that?  _Mother._ That's not what that woman was. A mother would have been supposed to be with her. Going shopping with Annabeth, taking her to ballet classes, giving her advice about boys, stopping her from moving over and over again.

"Let's... let's not do this here" Aria said.

"Yes, here. My ride is waiting right around the corner of the street." Annabeth stated. 

Aria gulped. The two of them could feel the tension in the air. Annabeth's mother started

"When I got pregnant, I didn't have a job. I hadn't been to college. I didn't  _want_  kids. Your father and I, we-"

"You mean I was  _accidental_?" Annabeth interrupted, shocked. Her heart flunk. She was never supposed to have been born, maybe that's why her life was that level of messy. 

"Yes, but let me finish. I told your father I took the pills, but maybe I forgot, or I didn't believe a baby could actually happen. Anyway, I didn't take the pills and you happened" to Annabeth, that sounded like she had been just a  _thing_  that messed up with her mother's life. 

Annabeth stayed quiet and bit back a few mean comments. She would leave them all to the end. 

"I couldn't go through that pregnancy alone, so I stayed with Frederick during it. I was too weak. When you were born, I was young. I hadn't even started my life yet, and I definitely couldn't raise a child. So I ran away. I didn't tell him." Aria finished. 

Annabeth's arms fell tense on her side, fists closed. That explanation was exactly what she expected, but she obviously wished for something else. 

"So, you left a man alone to raise a newborn child because you were irresponsible and you would rather go to clubs and parties that take care of a kid. Because you were a  _coward!_ " Annabeth pronounced the last word slowly. 

"Don't you dare say that to me! Do you even know what is the weight to have to raise a kid and-" Aria replied

"I'm not saying it would be simple! I'm just saying what you did was incredibly shitty and coward and many people who have accidental pregnancies decide to take care of the kids, and end up even having normal families! And it's not like you were alone, either. My dad is a great person." Annabeth was infuriated.  _Stop victimizing yourself, Aria_ , she though. 

"I know, but-" the mother started, but she saw the look in Annabeth's yes and changed her words. "Annabeth, I'm sorry I wasn't the perfect mother you were looking for, but there's nothing I can do about that anymore. If I could fix it, I really would. You seem like a lovely girl and I have changed, and I would love to get closer to you, but you probably don't want to. I hope you and your father are doing good. But, if you would excuse me, I have work. Apparently, you know my phone number. If you want to talk to me, please don't pretend you died. Just call me." Annabeth listened to all of that without saying a word. She didn't know what to say. The only thing she knew was she was very angry at that woman, but confused with her kindness in the end. She seemed honest. So, she said simply:

"Okay, I have other things to do, too. Um, bye." 

And ran to Percy's car. 

 

Percy was tired of waiting for Annabeth. The craziest and scariest theories were starting to creep into his head. Was her mother a murderer? Had she been kidnapped? Had she suffered an  _actual_  accident? He was about to get out of the car to check it out, when Annabeth herself showed up and entered Percy's car in a rush. She had obviously ran there, and her expression was completely blank. 

"Are you okay?" Percy asked. 

Annabeth blinked, like she had just gotten out of a trance. 

"I'm- yeah. I'm okay, I guess."

Percy was worried. He couldn't tell if the meeting had been good or bad. 

"Okay... And what does that mean?"

Annabeth looked out the window, probably checking if her mother was still out there. 

"I don't know. She told me what I was expecting her to say, but I secretly expected something else, you know?" Annabeth said, her voice low. 

Percy nodded. He didn't know, though. 

"You wanna tell me what she said? I mean, if you don't want to tell me, you don't have to, I'm just curious because-"

"Hey. It's okay" Annabeth said, and smiled weakly. "She told me she didn't want me, so I was an accident. Then, when I was born, she ran away because she was 'too young and too scared'" she explained, marking the words with her fingers. 

Percy now new what Annabeth though about the situation. She hated it. 

"But" the girl continued "I didn't expect what she said in the end. She was... nice. Kind."

Percy wanted to kiss her very badly. He wanted to kiss her anger and sadness away, but he couldn't, because Annabeth didn't want to be in a relationship and Percy would not be the one to force her into one. 

Annabeth looked at Percy. Her stormy eyes reflected the moonlight through the car window and she looked beautiful. 

"Percy, there's something I need to tell you" Annabeth said, suddenly serious. 

"I'm all ears" Percy replied. 

"Piper told me that, if I fell in love with someone, I should do something about it if I though I was going nuts." she said, looking Percy. 

"Yes."

Percy wanted and didn't want to know what was coming. He was obviously curious, but what if Annabeth told him she loves someone else? What would he do?

She continued:

"So, before I go nuts, I just want to let  you know that I'm in love with you."

Annabeth looked at Percy, studying his reaction.

His heart was raced. Fireworks exploded in celebration inside his head. He wanted to scream  _YES!_  and grab her and kiss her until their lips exploded, but he just took a deep breath and said:

"Alright. But, like, you wanna do something about that? I mean, you said all that stuff about not wanting to date because you move a lot and et cetera." Percy said, calmly. 

Annabeth smiled a little bit. 

"Well, since I'm already in love, there isn't really something I can do about it, right?"

Percy took it as a yes. He leaned in and placed his lips on Annabeth's. Her hands ran through his hair and he put his hand on the side of her face. Her lips felt so soft, and tasted like tea. 

"Right" Percy mumbled after they pulled away. 

Percy didn't think for a second about how broken  _his_  heart would be if Annabeth moved. 

 

Dating Percy was probably the worst and best choice Annabeth had ever made. Their relationship was so close to perfect, and  _god_  she loved him. Annabeth loved running her hands through his hair, loved kissing Percy (who was a very good kisser, by the way) and loved their little moments when they hung out. All the girls wanted a boyfriend like Percy, who was a natural gentleman, nice, funny and super hot. The complete package. Too good for Annabeth, at least that's what she though. 

They had ocasional fights, which always ended with _I'm sorry_ s and a kiss to Annabeth's forehead. 

Everyone thought they were cute. They were in love. Everything was perfect. 

And that's exactly why it was a bad choice: it was too good. 

 

Percy always took Annabeth on dates: they watched lame movies, sat in front of The Mica Lake, studied for finals, sat on some bench eating sandwiches and talked about random subjects, or simply made out on Percy's couch while his mom was at work. 

On that Thursday, they opted for the first option. 

They were curled up on Percy's couch (but not making out) (yet), watching Bridge to Terabithia. 

Thirty minutes after the movie had started, Percy paused the movie and got up.

"What?" Annabeth asked, raising one eyebrow. 

"I'm hungry. Aren't you?" Percy replied. Annabeth shrugged. 

The boy grinned. 

"Great. I'm bringing chips." he informed, and sprinted out of the living room, to come back thirty seconds later with a giant bag of Doritos. 

Annabeth widened her eyes. 

"Oh, my gosh, can you even eat all of that? That's bigger than my school bag! It's not phisically possible to ingest all of that."

"You're right. That's why you will help me."

Annabeth rolled her eyes. 

"Just unpause the movie."

And they watched the rest of the movie, Annabeth sometimes making comments about the visual effects or the character, and Percy talking about how different Terabithia would have been if  _he_  ruled it. 

"Please. There are only giant trolls because they imagine them. If I was the king of Terabithia, there wouldn't be giant trolls. There would be seas, though. And mermaids. Hot mermaids." Annabeth slapped his shoulder "Hey! No worries, you would be the queen."

When the movie was over, the two teenagers were halfway through the bag of Doritos. 

Annabeth cleaned her hands on her pants and stood up. 

"I told you. The movie is over and there are still Doritos in that bag. And I can't eat anymore."

Percy sighed, defeated. 

"Oh, what will I do with ALL these Doritos?" he said, exaggerating on the drama. 

Annabeth joined his acting. She rubbed her chin, then raised one finger, comically showing that she had an idea. 

"I know! Why don't you... put them back on the shelf?"

Percy jumped up and kissed her.

"You're so smart, Annabeth! What would I do without you?"

"Crash and burn."

When Percy got back from the kitchen, Annabeth pulled him to her without a word and pressed his lips to hers, ignoring the taste of Doritos. Percy didn't, though. 

"You taste like Doritos, Annabeth." he said, between kisses. 

"Thanks, you too."

Percy ran his hands on Annabeth's back and Annabeth hugged Percy's neck.

They fell on the couch, Annabeth on Percy's lap. 

They had never gone further than that. The two had never tried. Percy, a sexually frustraded teenage boy, really wanted it, but he didn't know about Annabeth. And he wasn't going to force her. 

But, on that day, Annabeth's hands made their way to the hem of Percy's shirt. His heart raced. 

"Are you sure?" he asked. 

Annabeth looked at Percy's face and nodded. Percy threw his arms up and his shirt slid up. 

But, on that moment, Percy heard his mother's key on the door.

"Shitshitshitshit" Percy blurted out. 

Annabeth jumped from his lap and picked up Percy's shirt, that was lying on the floor, and threw it at him. 

He quickly put it on as Annabeth ran her hands to her hair to make it look less messy. 

When Sally Jackson, entered the room, the two of them were just sitting there, looking at something on Annabeth's phone. 

"Hey, guys! How are you doing, Annabeth?" Sally asked. Percy thought about the way Annabeth's mom treated her, and felt thankful for the mother he had.

Annabeth smiled. 

"I'm great, Sally, thank you."

"That's great. You two studied, right? The finals are coming!"

"Yes, mom. And we watched a movie."

Sally nodded, but her eyes told Percy that she knew more than that. Annabeth and her boyfriend blushed. 

When Sally left the room, Annabeth turned to Percy. They stayed silent for five seconds and broke out in laughter. 

"She- she- she looked at us like  _I know it all!_ " Percy laughed out. 

"Yes, oh god!" Annabeth agreed. 

They were still laughing when Annabeth's phone rang. She gave Percy and apologetic look. 

"Hello? Yes. Oh, my god, right! I'm so sorry! I'll be there in ten minutes! Okay, bye."

"What's wrong?" the boy asked. 

"I promised I would watch Bobby's soccer game and I forgot. I really have to go, sorry."

Annabeth got up from the couch and quickly kissed Percy after a smile. They exchanged goodbyes and Annabeth left her boyfriend just sitting there, thinking about how he wished the possibility of her moving away from him was smaller. 

 

Annabeth spent months waiting for that moment, but wishing it wouldn't happen. She prayed to the gods for it not to come, and yet prepared herself emotionally for when it came. And it finally came. 

"We're moving in a month. To Boston" her father informed while the family ate dinner, eyeing his children to see their reaction. Annabeth's wasn't what he expected. 

When the girl processed the words, she felt like a cold hand was pressing her heart. Annabeth could feel the tears coming. Her sadness came out of every pore, but also did anger. 

"You have to be kidding me" she blurted out. 

"Annabeth, we stayed here for very long! Longer than most places we've lived in. Almost a year!"

On that moment, anger took over the sadness. 

"That's not long, dad! That's not normal!" Annabeth was screaming "Everyone lives in one place their entire lives until they go to college, move once if much. I can't live like this anymore, dad!"

Bobby and Matthew stared at her in shock, just like her step-mother. 

"Dear, you know we have to. It's for our family's good" Annabeth's dad reasoned. 

"For our  _good_?" the girl yelled. "This isn't doing me any good! This just turns my life into a complete mess, I'm always sad because I'll have to let go of everything I have, I can't have friends, I can't be part of anything, I can't have a boyfriend!"

"But you have a boyfriend!" her father replied. 

"Yes, but now I'll be forced to break up with him and leave him against my will because you are just useless and can't keep a serious job!" 

Annabeth regreted the words immediately after they came out, but she was too angry to admit that and too proud to take them back. Maybe her dad needed to hear that. She stormed up the stairs and into her room, leaving her father standing in the leaving room with his mouth wide open. 

Annabeth sat on her bed and stared at the wall. The anger had faded. It was now just a drop of water, compared to the wave of sadness that came over her. 

 

Sally Jackson was the best cook in the world. That night, she had baked chai cookies with vanilla, which were Annabeth's favorites, so Percy naturally decided to share them with her. He sprinted up the stairs and saw that Annabeth was in her room, because the lights were on. Maybe she was on the corner of the room, reading on her bed. 

Percy rang the bell. 

When Annabeth appeared, Percy was sure she was  _not_  reading. 

Her eyes were red from crying and puffy. Her cheeks and nose were red, and her expression was sadder than he had ever seen, cheeks wet from tears. And, the worst of all, she couldn't look into Percy's eyes. 

An alarm sounded in Percy's head. 

"Annabeth," he called, gently "what happened?"

She sniffed, then finally looked at him. Then, she covered her face with her hands and started sobbing quietly. 

 _I'm in trouble_ , Percy thought. He mentally relived the last week, looking for something he could have done wrong. The boy was sure he'd done everything right. Plus, Annabeth wasn't the kind of person who cried about anything. That meant Annabeth's problem was with someone else, which made Percy want to strangle that someone. But first, he had to find out who it was. 

"Hey. I'll come over, and you can tell me what's happening. You know I hate seeing you like that" Percy offered. 

Annabeth looked suddenly alarmed. 

"No! Don't come here! Don't!" she said. Percy was getting more and more worried. " _I_ 'll come over. Be there in two minutes."

Percy didn't even know what to say, so he just nodded as he watched Annabeth wipe tears off her face and open her door room. 

Percy ran downstairs to open the door. His mother must have noticed his concern, because she asked:

"Baby, what's wrong?"

"Something happened to Annabeth. She was crying" Percy informed, voice low. 

Sally's eyes filled with concern as well. Percy knew she considered Annabeth a part of their family, and loved her like a daughter. Percy couldn't blame her. 

When Percy opened the door, Annabeth was already there, looking down. When she saw that her boyfriend had opened the door, she threw her arms around him in a breathtaking hug. 

Percy hugged Annabeth back and kissed the top of her head, running his hands through her back. 

"Hey, Annabeth. Everything's fine" he comforted her. 

Annabeth slowly untangled herself from Percy's arms and wiped her face. 

"You don't get it. It's not okay."

Annabeth had never used that voice, at least near Percy. She sounded hurt, heartbroken. Hopeless. Percy was getting more and more worried, and that was the last strand. 

"Okay, you're gonna come in and tell me what's going on before I go nuts" Percy said firmly, but careful. 

With and arm around Annabeth, Percy led her to the living room and they sat on the couch. 

"So, tell me" Percy said. 

Annabeth hesitated. It looked like she was afraid to tell Percy whatever it had happenned, but she dropped the bomb.

"I-I'm moving."

Percy blinked. He probably heard it wrong. It can't be.

"You... what?" he asked. 

"Moving. Leaving Mica."

Percy definitely had heard it right that time, so why was it so hard to accept the words? Oh, right. Because he was completely in love with Annabeth, who was leaving him, leaving his friends, going somewhere else. She would probably forget him. Settle down somewhere far away from Percy, find a new boyfriend. Percy's couldn't stand that thought.

"No" was all he managed to mutter.

Annabeth nodded slowly, confirming what she'd just said. Then she buried her face in Percy's shoulder and started crying. 

"When?" he said against her neck, his voice trembling. 

"In a month" she replied. 

 _Oh, no_. 

A month? That was too short. That was just not enough to say goodbye. To be honest, Percy wanted her to stay there forever, in that lame city in the middle of nowhere, throwing rocks at the Lake and talking through the window. But she wouldn't. She would go somewhere far away, which reminded Percy he didn't know where she was going. 

"Where... where are you moving to?"

"Boston."

 ** _Oh, no_**. 

That was even worse. Boston was halfway across the country. There's no way Percy could visit her there frequently. 

Annabeth untangled herself from Percy and sat straight on the couch and stared at the ceiling. 

"I don't even know what to do anymore, Percy. I can't keep moving like this. I can't build a life just to have it destroyed months later." Annabeth said, her voice low and shaking.

"Your dad lost his job, right? There's no way he can get it back?" Percy questioned, throwing one arm around Annabeth's shoulder and pulling her close to him. 

"Usually, not. And I said some really mean things to him, and now I'm feeling even worse" Annabeth confessed. 

Percy wanted to tell her everything was okay, it would be okay, but he would be lying. He was not okay with it, and she obviously wasn't okay with it either. 

"I don't want to leave you, Percy. I love you." Annabeth said, defeated. 

"I love you too" he replied simply. That was all he could say on that moment. 

Sally walked in and opened her arms to Annabeth. The girl ran to Percy's mom. The two told her everything, and Sally started crying as well. 

"Oh, my dear" and the mother held Annabeth in her arms, letting her cry. 

After ten minutes of sadness and small talk, Annabeth's dad called her. The girl kissed Percy, hugged Sally and walked back to her house, looking at the ground. 

Percy would never admit it to anyone, but he felt one or two tears rolling down his cheeks too. 

 

The rest of Annabeth's friends didn't take the news much better than Percy. 

When Annnabeth pronounced the words  _I'm moving_ , Piper immediately started crying as the others stared at her, part shocked, part horrified and part sad. 

That month went by like the clouds in a rainy day.

Every time Percy went to Annabeth's place, more and more things were in boxes. Mr. Chase looked at him weird, like,  _You're still dating?_  

Everyone was slowly and painfully saying goodbye to Annabeth, and so was she. Percy would do anything to change that. 

What impressed him was how Annabeth still studied for the test like she was going to spend the rest of the year there. If it were Percy, he would have totally laid back. He would be going to another school anyway, right?

Piper threteaned to throw a goodbye party, but Annabeth told her that if her friend did that, she would block her on Facebook. The party never happened. 

Percy honestly wouldn't want to go to that party. He though parties were for celebrating. He would have felt like he was saying  _Yay! You're FINALLY going away! Never come back!_

Which would be wrong in so many levels. 

Party, or no party, the day came. The day she would get on her plane to Boston. 

Everyone came to the airport. Percy, his mom, Piper, Jason, Hazel, Frank, Thalia, even Leo. 

(Piper also wanted to bring a sign, but Annabeth said she would burn it.)

Annabeth gave each one of her friends a hug and a sad smile, and told them something Percy would never know what it was.

Percy was last. When his turn came, he was nervous - not about hugging Annabeth, obviously; he'd done that a million times. It was about the goodbye. Annabeth was about to walk out of his life, most likely forever, and, still, he loved her like he always did. 

Annabeth stopped in front of him and looked deep into his eyes, like she was trying to memorize what they looked like. Percy did the same. 

After about ten seconds of shameless staring, Percy pulled Annabeth to him and hugged her like he'd never hugged anyone in his life. He though, that maybe, if he held her close enough, she wouldn't go. She'd just stay with him forever. Percy could feel the sadness and the frustration in every inch of his body. He didn't want Annabeth to go. He hated that she had to leave him. He hated that moment. He'd never been that sad. 

When Annabeth kissed Percy, he held her face with his two hands and he threw her arms around his neck. Her face was wet with tears, and so was Percy's. 

"I love you" he told her. 

Then, she looked straight into Percy's eyes and made a promise. 

 

Annabeth was a smart girl. She knew that she could find her way out of anything, including that, so she promised Percy:

"I'm coming back. I swear. I'll find a way."

His eyes were sad. That was the first time Annabeth had ever seen Percy cry. If it were another ocasion, she probably would have said something like  _Percy Jackson, crying? I didn't know you could do that_. But Annabeth herself was crying too much to say anything. 

"But, you have to promise me, Percy. Promise you will wait for me."

Annabeth loved him even more, when he said, without hesitation. 

"I promise."

She kissed him once again and told him she loved him. Then, her father called her. Her plane was there. She waved to her friends and ran behind her dad. 

But she would find a way back to Mica. 

 

_I'm a genious._

Annabeth was pretty sure about that. She deserved a Nobel Prize for being so smart. 

Annabeth hung up the phone, in her new house's room, without a window that connected her to Percy. But, she still had a smile splattered across her face. 

"Thank you so much. Bye, mom."

 

Percy kept his word. He barely looked at other girls during the six months Annabeth was gone. He wasn't interested in them anyway. He still loved the girl who was living far away from him. 

They skyped, they texted, they talked on the phone, but  _god_  he missed her. He even started thinking about getting a job and buying plane tickets to Boston. Percy Jackson. Getting a job at 17 years old.  _I'm out of my mind_ , he thought,  _I barely make it out alive of school!_

He was pretty sure that he was, in fact, out of his mind. 

But who cares, right? Aren't we all a little crazy? That's what Annabeth had told him once, at least. 

 

If it had been Godzilla, he would have been less surprised. Literally. 

Two days back, Annabeth had stopped answering his texts and his Skype calls, he though that she was ignoring her on purpose because she wanted to forget him, but then he remembered her promise. And that made him think: what if she didn't mean it? What if she got a terminal disease and couldn't ever go in an airplane? Those questions kept him in a mental breakdown for two days. 

That's why he got so surprised when he opened his door and saw Annabeth Chase standing right in front of him, live and in colours.

Percy's brain stopped. He checked 25 times to make sure it was really her. Then he said something smart like "uh" and almost jumped on her, but she did it before him, giggling. 

Percy picked Annabeth up from the ground and spinned her in the air.  _Annabethannabethannabeth!_  he tough. Her hair still smelled like lemons, curly and blonde and soft. She smashed her lips to his and Percy had never been so happy. He wanted to scream and laugh and jump and dance, but instead he just hugged her tighter and kissed her back.

When they finally caught up for air, both smiled at eachother like fools; and Percy half said half laughed:

"What are you doing here?" 

"Missed me, Jackson?" Annabeth asked, and evil smile on her face. 

Percy noticed he had been so obsessed with trying to get Annabeth to talk to him and still not sounding like a creep that he didn't even bother brushing his hair or putting on decent clothes. But, hey, it was Sunday!

Percy tried to look angry, but failed because he couldn't stop smiling.

"Why didn't you answer my texts? I though you had been kidnapped!"

"No, you didn't. You know I'm too smart to be kidnapped. I actually wanted to make you worried just to see your reaction when I showed up here. I wanted it to be a surprise! You should have seen your face" Annabeth couldn't stop smiling either. 

"But how?" Percy finally asked. 

"My mom." 

_What?_

"What?"

"I'm living with her."

" _What?_ "

"Don't be stupid, Percy. I called her, since she'd said she wanted to know me better that time we met, so I talked to her a lot and turns out we get along pretty well. I told her that I would do anything to come back to Mica and she was like 'Hey! Why don't you move into my place? I'm single and lonely!' so I just said yes."

Percy was shocked. Never in his wildest dreams he though Annabeth would do that. And she seemed happy about it. 

"I'm guessing your dad didn't really agree with that." he commented. 

"Well, not at the beggining, I mean, it's my mom we're talking about!" she explained. "But I guess he saw that I was completely done with moving all the time and after many discussions and negotiations, he let me with the condition that I have to spend one weekend a month on wherever they're living."

"Annabeth Chase, you truly impress me. Actually, I think you scare me. Sometimes I think you could literally make someone jump off a bridge using logic." Percy was impressed. She had managed to move back to a city halfway across the country all by herself. And a little help from her mother. 

"Thank you."

Just when Percy was about to kiss her again, someone gasped behind Annabeth. They looked to see Sally Jackson with her hands covering her mouth and her eyes bright. 

"Annabeth!" she screamed, surprised. 

Much to Percy's surprise, Annabeth was the one who ran to hug his mom, not the other way around. Seems like Annabeth loved Sally as much as Sally loved her. 

Annabeth surprised Piper next. Her friend started screaming and hugged her for about 5 minutes straight. 

"Hey, I'm getting jealous here!" Percy joked. 

Piper just kept hugging Annabeth, who laughed, and stuck her tongue out at him.

They called the rest of their friends to meet in a local café.  _Life or death situation_ , Piper said on the phone. Everyone showed up, but mostly because you just couldn't say no to Piper. 

This time, Leo wanted to throw a welcome party, and Annabeth said she would move back to Boston if he did, and Percy said that he would stop her himself, even if he had to set fire to the plane. 

She kissed him. Their friends pretended to be disgusted. 

Everything was exactly as it should be. 

**Author's Note:**

> Due to the huge amount of times I misspelled "Percy", I came up with a pun:  
> What do you call Percy when he's being perverted?  
> Pervy.


End file.
